Guitar dealers?

Usually I buy in Andorra. It's not a country from Europe, it's a small country near I live. Less taxes. Lately has been closed 2 shops but today I see a new one. Fanatic guitars from Barcelona.
I tryed some Godins. Very good quality guitars, low price, with cases. A lots of guitars to test. Bass guitar as well. I saw Friedman, two rock, PRS, Marshall, Blackstar,.. amps. An exemple of amps made in USA or amps made in UK. Marshall VM2266 (50w)750 euros Friedman small box combo(50w) 2800 euros.
 
Usually I buy in Andorra. It's not a country from Europe, it's a small country near I live. Less taxes. Lately has been closed 2 shops but today I see a new one. Fanatic guitars from Barcelona.
I tryed some Godins. Very good quality guitars, low price, with cases. A lots of guitars to test. Bass guitar as well. I saw Friedman, two rock, PRS, Marshall, Blackstar,.. amps. An exemple of amps made in USA or amps made in UK. Marshall VM2266 (50w)750 euros Friedman small box combo(50w) 2800 euros.

I buy used too.
 
I couldnt afford a RICKI so I built one ;)
THE KRAKEN ...... is a rough and rowdy beastie .................
View attachment 65879

I had intended to change out the neck pup for a REAL Rick one -- but it sounds friggin HUGE and LOUD ....and so....... I left it ;)

Strangely, my Rick started my craze with ibanez. I got this 4001 back in '90 for $100.
I think it was a '72.
Then in 2012 I sold it for almost 2k

IMG_2268-979x1305.JPG

So with the money, I purchased this s5570, but ultimately returned it.
F1233675-front-large.jpg

In exchange I got the JS2400.
I had later realized that the s-model played so much better then anything I've played. Then I discovered Rick Harris and ibanez rules....
it's been ibanez obsession ever since.

20170226_110042.jpg
 
I get mine from various music stores in the area. Luckily, I live in a densely populated area with a large musician base. Having Berklee College of Music doesn't hurt, and most of the school systems have music programs. And then there is a huge local music scene between NYC and Portland, ME. Hence, there are many brick and mortar stores, and no shortage of used professional gear.

Some of my favorites over the years have been:

Vater's Music
Walpole Music
Cambridge Music
E. U. Wurlitzer
Mr. Music
Bill's Music
Retro Music

All those stores have treated me great over the years. I've only bought one guitar at Guitar Center (my T-Bird bass), and my only Sweetwater purchase was a '61 Les Paul Re-Issue. Also only two Craigslist scores. I like the whole process of going window shopping and tire kicking. I never know what I'm looking for until I find it. I also only buy used stuff anyway, because I like letting the other guy take the hit when driving it off the lot.

That's cool. I like kicking tires too.
I visit Southborough MA all the time.... going to have to map out some of those places for a side trip.
 
Yes, this. The wizard necks are too thin. It was all marketing in my book. Thin necks require you to close your hand further and use more energy. There was a YT video on this years ago where they analyzed the physics of it and a neck that fills your hand more is overall easier to play and will tire you less.

The Andy Timmons is not too bad, but I still need a meaty neck. I even prefer U shaped necks most.
The opposite happened in my case.

Have always had nice full necks, but once I tried the Ibanez Wizard. Guess that's just my "fit"
 
Yes, this. The wizard necks are too thin. It was all marketing in my book. Thin necks require you to close your hand further and use more energy. There was a YT video on this years ago where they analyzed the physics of it and a neck that fills your hand more is overall easier to play and will tire you less.

The Andy Timmons is not too bad, but I still need a meaty neck. I even prefer U shaped necks most.

Marketing or not, the wizard neck was a game changer . So far for me, nothing compares. mine plays soooooo well.
 
Yeah, but PHYSICS man.....:fan:

Never played a wizard neck that I liked. And I really, really wanted to like them.

I guess I could mention that I have huge hands. I can almost cover an entire keyboard with one.
Possibly the large hands?
I have fairly small hands and started with an L6-S copy. Thin, narrow, fast neck. I got so used to it that Wizard necks feel perfect to me. Didn't get an Ibby tillI had the other guitar for like 30 yrs. I find thin necks very comfy my hamd gets sore doing bar chords on fatter necks.
 
Hmm. My first Strat clone was from a local music store where I also worked as a trainee for a couple of weeks in school...

When I got my MIM strat it was a choice between Thomann who had immediate stock of the white colour I wanted or a local store where I could've got a sunburst with 2 month delivery time and pay about 50% more. Considering that I barely had enough money to begin with, I went with Thomann and got a hard case as well.

Since then, most of my guitars have either been from Thomann or second hand. I did get an Affinity Tele from a local big-box store which was an exception.

I don't really want to buy from there, but with lefties the availability tends to be quite :poo: everywhere else. I don't see the point in paying more to get stuff slower. Sure, with stuff that's in stock you could try it out, but so far I've never really wanted anything that anyone had in stock locally...
 
That's cool. I like kicking tires too.
I visit Southborough MA all the time.... going to have to map out some of those places for a side trip.


Of the stores I listed, only three still exist.

Mr. Music is in Allston (part of Boston)
Bill's Music is in Peabody, near me bordering Salem.
Retro Music in Keene, NH

If you're in Southborough, there are a couple of shops in Worcester you could check out. Everyone says Union Music is really good. My bass player friend bought his Dan Armstrong and Jerry Jones basses there. Remedy Music in Worcester is also supposed to be pretty cool, but small.

If you venture towards Boston, Monster Mike's in Central Square, Cambridge is a nice little shop. He mostly caters to the Garage and Rockabilly crowd, so he'll have Tiescos and Gretsches. Matt's Music is to the south in Weymouth, and Performance Music is to the north in Woburn. Music Emporium is just west in Lexington.

Then, if you go west from Southborough, there are some cool shops in the Easthampton and Northampton area. Mill River, Bird House, and Luthier's Co-Op.

There are more cool shops within a couple of hours such as Friendly River Music in Hiram, Maine and Northern Lights Music in Littleton, NH. It all depends how much of a road trip you want to take.
 
Back
Top